Wolf Posted May 28, 2004 Share Posted May 28, 2004 Okay, now that I've got the water flow figured out, it's time to figure out which lights to use. A few more months of researching and I might be ready to start my aquarium! Anyways, I've been doing some research and I just have a few questions. This is for a 29gal SPS tank, and I'd like a nice deep blue. I'm going with a 20K XM, but I'm not sure if I should go with a 250w or a 175w. What are the pros/cons of each? It's not much more expensive for the 250w bulbs and retrofit kit, but I don't know if it's necessary. Will I get better growth from the 250's? Also, I would like to have a few softies in there as well, in the bottom of the tank, maybe under a "cliff" or something if I need to. Some shrooms down in some caves, a few torch corals... So, maybe the 250 is too much? Oh, and clams. Next, I'm also planning on adding two florescents, definately one actinic (24" VHO 75watt). Do I also need a daylight, or would two actinics be okay? And, can I keep one actinic on for moonlight 24/7, or do I need a moonlight lamp seperately? Thanks a bunch! Wolf Link to comment
don.earnest Posted May 28, 2004 Share Posted May 28, 2004 http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.p...on&pagenumber=1 I'd go with the 250's to get better colors from your SPS's but I'd keep them at least 10" from the water surface and add two fans in each side of the canopy, two blowing in and two blowing out, to keep the heat down. If you're going for the "deep blue" look, then two actinics are fine. Your softies will be okay as long as you keep them on or near the bottom or in "caves" as you mentioned. The torch doesn't mind light so much but the shrooms will definately need some shade if you want them to open up fully. Link to comment
Wolf Posted May 28, 2004 Author Share Posted May 28, 2004 Thanks don.earnest! The link you provided is how I knew I wanted the XM 20K's! I'm still unsure about the balast though. Is it, the more PAR distribution, the better? If so, it looks like the PFO HQI performed the best, but it uses a lot of electricity. Is that correct? If so, I think I'll just go with the IceCap, unless it's really that important? Can someone explain "PAR" to me? Thanks! Wolf Link to comment
Wolf Posted May 28, 2004 Author Share Posted May 28, 2004 Oh, and what about moonlight? Does it actually benifit anything, or does it just look nice? This tank will be at work, so I don't really care about the aesthetics, just healthy corals. Link to comment
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